Stroker combo with cathedrals
First post and I hope it’s not too long! Wanting to build a shortblock this winter and add my current cam and heads to it. Currently running cam motion junkyard dog cam with mild ported 243s Vic jr and pro systems 800 on a lq4. What is the cubic inch limit with cathedrals? Considering building a 408 iron or an alum block 383. Which combo would work best with my current top end? This is in a street strip
Fox body.
Fox body.
My 383 LS1 is a very fun well mannered street engine. The top end is what was pretty typical back in 2002/2003 for a heads & cam LS1. It peaks at 6,000 rpm instead of 6,500 rpm and makes an extra 40 foot pounds of torque at the wheels and like maybe 10 more hp. The 3.9 bore limited the valve size to 2.04 and on TEA's flow bench 320 cfm. The exact same head on a 4 inch bore flowed 330 cfm with 2.08 valves. Depending on cam selection etc definitely more potential power with the bigger bore.
Like Darth & KCS said go for max cubes and bigger bore more for more hp and power. The 408 with a 4.030 bore and 4 inch crank is an extra 25 cubes over a 383 LS1 that will allow more cam. With a 4.030 bore and 4.125 crank it's a ~421, 38 more cubes than a 383 LS1.
Unless some sort of class rules require a 3.9 bore or its a just for fun resto-mod toy like my 91 RS, it's very hard to make a logical argument in support of a 383 LS1 these days. Getting the extra ~100 pounds off the front of the RS was good for handling.
BTW - Thompson Motorsports has a sweet sale going on for 408 short blocks.
Last edited by 99 Black Bird T/A; Oct 17, 2018 at 09:15 PM.
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Just be aware, that theoretically a bigger valve will bleed back into the head at low lift more than a smaller valve will. So valve opening and closing rates are important with that bigger valve and a custom cam may be a better choice.
First post and I hope it’s not too long! Wanting to build a shortblock this winter and add my current cam and heads to it. Currently running cam motion junkyard dog cam with mild ported 243s Vic jr and pro systems 800 on a lq4. What is the cubic inch limit with cathedrals? Considering building a 408 iron or an alum block 383. Which combo would work best with my current top end? This is in a street strip
Fox body.
Fox body.










